Washington, D.C. – The Reform Party has officially endorsed legislation
introduced by U. S. Rep. James A. Traficant, Jr. (D–OH) to open participation
in presidential debates to all qualified candidates. "I want to commend
the Reform Party for embracing my bill to ensure that the American people
have the opportunity to make a fully informed and educated decision when
voting for President," said Traficant.

At the Reform Party's second annual national convention last weekend
in Atlanta, Georgia the delegates voted to approve a resolution endorsing
and supporting Traficant's bill, H.R. 4310. The resolution was introduced
by Reform Party members Mary Clare Wohlford of Pulaski, Virginia and Dale
Barlow of Tulsa, Oklahoma.

H.R. 4310 amends the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 to
require organizations staging a presidential debate to invite all candidates
that meet all Constitutional requirements for being President, have qualified
for the ballot in enough states such that the candidate has a mathematical
chance of receiving the minimum number of electoral votes necessary for
election, and are eligible for matching payments from the Presidential
Election Campaign Fund. The bill was introduced last July.

"Staging organizations should not be given the subjective authority
to bar a qualified candidate from participation in a presidential debate
simply because a subjective judgement has been made that the candidate
does not have a reasonable chance of winning the election," asserted Traficant.
"A presidential election isn't just a contest between individual candidates.
It's a contest between different ideas, policies and ideologies.
At a time when our country is facing many complex problems, the American
people should have the opportunity to be exposed to as many ideas, policies
and proposals as possible in a presidential election campaign. H.R.
4310 will ensure that this happens," added Traficant.